Denali of my Dreams
by RedBisou
Summary: Spike and the gang encounter a girl engulfed in flames, who is not what she seems to be. What is she? Where does she come from? And what is after her? Takes place during season 6. Rated T for now, I'm bad at summaries
1. Girl in Flames

**Hello! So, this idea just popped into my head, I began writing and I ended up with 3 chapters already so I thought I would publish the first chapter and see what people think. This is not Buffy/Spike friendly, though there is a romance between them it is very much to the story in the way she acts towards him. I apologize for any grammar mistakes, I looked it over but not very thoroughly. **

**Please review, let me know if you want the next chapter, if so I'll post it, if not I might anyway I don't know LOL :D**

* * *

Taking a drag from his cigarette and blowing it out slowly, he turned to the blonde girl beside him.

"So what you're saying love is you need my help" he said, looking down at her. They were standing in an alley, he was leaning against a brick wall, while she was looking through a chain fence beside him, her hand gripping it tightly, wondering if it was a good idea to have met him in the first place. Beyond the fence were Willow and Xander, waiting at a safe distance for her, stakes at the ready just in case.

"I wouldn't say need" she replied curtly, turning away from the fence.

"What would you say then? Want? Do you _want_ me Buffy?" Spike asked, stepping towards her. He caressed her arm and brought his hand up to her chin, tilting her face to gaze into her eyes. "Is that would you are saying, pet?"

Before she could reply, a scream was heard from behind Spike, far off but close enough to be heard. Without a word, they both broke off, sprinting towards the sound. Buffy could hear Willow and Xander following behind, their footfalls bouncing off the walls and was glad she had brought them along. Up ahead they could hear the distinct sound of fighting, the clink of metal against pavement, the grunts of men, mixed in with the sound of fire crackling. When they rounded the corner, they both stopped, taking in the scene before them, deciding how to react.

There were three bulky figures wearing strange glowing green and silver armor, axes in their hands, looming over a bright, flickering object in front of them. They were speaking to it, though their deep voices didn't carry, as they stepped closer to the corner, raising their weapons. Rushing towards them, Buffy and Spike tackled the closest two, while Willow and Xander, rounding the corner, followed suite teaming up against the last warrior. Stealing the weapon from her opponent, Buffy swung the ax and it sliced through her opponents head, green blood oozing out of its grey neck, and dripping off of the ax. With a grim smile she turned towards Spike, who had his enemy pinned to the ground. With a swift movement and a growl, he grabbed its head and snapped its neck, jumping off of it and looked up at Buffy. With a nod, she turned and saw Xander get thrown into the wall near the glowing object by the creature that Willow was clinging onto, her arms wrapped around its neck. It roared and shook itself until she fell off, but its fight was short lived. Buffy lifted the ax in her hand and threw it at the creature's chest; the weapon sunk in, killing the figure instantly.

"Well, that was easy" Buffy said, wiping the green blood off of her arm.

"Speak for yourself" replied Willow, rubbing her backside.

Buffy turned to Spike to tell him off for touching her earlier, when she caught the look of confusion and mild wonder on his face. Following his stare, she looked into the corner where the flickering object was, Xander sitting a few feet away from it unaware, his eyes closed and panting. She looked closer at the object and realized she was wrong, that wasn't a _thing_ at all.

It looked like a small human figure made completely of flames, that was slowly standing up.

With a gasp, Buffy took a step forward, and the figure moved its head to face her, dark orbs where the eyes would be and a thin dark line where she guessed the mouth was. Flames billowed around its head, flowing and licking around, resembling hair in the wind. Stepping up to the fallen armored warrior, Buffy wrenched the ax out of its chest and stood still, looking at the creature.

It blinked a few times, the dark holes in its head opening and closing, and it took a step to the side, looking at the exit a couple feet away. Noticing the tension for the first time, Xander looked up as the figure slowly approached him and shouted in surprise, jumping up. Not wasting any time, Buffy rushed the creature, swinging the ax wide but the creature ducked and missed her target. She turned to face it and saw a barrel of rain water next to her, with a smile she leaped, kicking it over onto the fire demon. With a hiss and an agonizing shriek, the figure fell to the ground its flames sputtering out, leaving behind a blackened silhouette of a body, its arms wrapped around itself shaking. Lifting the axe up, Buffy prepared to finish it off.

"Wait!" Spike shouted, rushing towards Buffy and stopping the ax from hitting its target.

Buffy looked at him with furry in her eyes, "What are you doing?" she shouted.

"I don't think she means us any harm!"

"She?"

Looking down at the shivering figure, Buffy began to notice its silhouette was definitely feminine, its, HER, arms wrapped around her ash black chest. Her skin was slowly flaking off of her, leaving blackened flecks. Underneath was almost pure white skin, glowing slightly.

Willow slowly approached the girl, leaning before her. "Who are you?" she asked gently.

The girl lifted her head slightly, shaking, and opened her mouth, the skin around it cracking and peeling as she tried to speak. "I...I... Malvina," she managed to say before she fainted, her head falling back to the pavement.

Buffy looked down at the figure, puzzled. "But, she's a demon." She said pointing at the burned girl, then looking over at Willow, who returned a troubled look.

"So am I pet," Spike replied, bending over and gentle picking up the girl.

"So am I"

* * *

**So yeah, like I said, if you want to know how this story goes just leave a review saying so, it only takes a minute :) THANKS!**


	2. Girl in Chains

"We can't keep her here" he heard from the other room, "she could be dangerous and I won't have her near Dawn if I can help it"

"She's tied up Buffy, she can't go near her even if she wanted to."

"That's even if she would want to, Spike doesn't think she's evil. Beside's we're all here."

"Yes, Dawn is well protected."

"I'm right here!" Dawn could be heard protesting.

As they began bickering again, Spike shook his head. He was in Buffy's house, sitting in the living room and had been listening to them bicker for hours in the kitchen about what they should do with the girl who was currently chained up to a chair in front of him, a position he was all too familiar with. When they had brought her here, her blacked skin had almost all flaked off, leaving behind a strange white, porcelain coloured skin, paler then his own. Her hair had grown before his eyes, quickly too, reaching down her back, the blood red colour of it an eerie contrast to her skin, but not unattractively so. Her head was bent down, her hair covering part of her face, free of any blemish, not a freckle or a beauty mark to be seen, with rosy red lips. Buffy had given her a light green summer dress to cover her with, the skirt of it collected at her ankles, for which he was grateful, her blackened figure had been like a suite, and as it shed, her body had slowly become more visible.

With that thought he gazed at her face, and began wondering if she was edible when her eyes lashes began to flutter against her cheek and her lips parted letting in a short breath, murmuring.

He sat staring at her as she slowly regained consciousness and snapped her head up, looking around and letting out a strangled sounding cry. Jumping in the chair trying to break free, she looked up at the sound of someone clearing their throat. Spike noticed the look of fear cross her face when she saw him, and a smile spread across his face. How he missed seeing that reaction.

"Name?" he asked simply, looking into the girls eyes. She looked back at him with silent defiance in her eyes.

He sighed, jerking his head towards the sounds in the kitchen. "Either you talk to me, or I bring them in here. It's your choice, love"

Tilting her head to the side, she listened to the voices for a couple minutes before turning her head back towards him.

"Malvina"

"Oh bugger," he sighed, "Engliiiiish" he said slowly to her. "We speak English. Do you know it? Como es English?"

She looked at him with a blank expression on her face, the fear gone from her features. "Mal-vee-na" she pronounced with a strange accent, as slowly as he had. "My name is Malvina."

"Oh," he replied straightening his trench coat. "Alright, well good!" he growled, trying to refill her terror.

It didn't work. She began trying to break free again, struggling against the chains, trying to kick her feet.

"What are you doing? Stop that!" he stood up, towering over her. To his delight she shrunk back and stopped trying to get loose. "That's better I still have some questions for you." He sat back onto the couch, glancing to make sure the people in the kitchen were still unaware of her consciousness.

"I don't have time for this; I need to find some place to hide!"

"Hide from what, those guys in armor? We killed them, every last one"

"No, you didn't. At least not all of them, I need to get out of here before they find me." She looked at him pleadingly.

"Why are they after you anyway? What did you do?"

"I didn't _do _anything," she replied bitterly.

"Well you had to of done something, for them to be after you like that. What were they anyway? I've never seen a demon like that before, and I've seen many demons in my time. Actually, come to think of it, I've never seen a demon like _you_ before either." He eyed her suspiciously.

"Demon?"

"Yeah, a demon, you know, a nonhuman life form, excluding gods, robots, and animal of course. In other words, you and your glowing buddies."

Malvina grimaced at the word, "I am not a demon"

"Are you a human, god, robot, or animal?"

"No"

"Well, then you're a demon. Sorry to be the one to break it to you." He chuckled, 'Are there others of your kind? A clan or a group you live with?"

She dropped her eyes to the floor, "No. I am the only one of my kind"

"You mean, the only one who turns into a blazing inferno? Because I'll let you know, I don't like that. I don't like that at all."

"No, I'm not the only one –"she stopped herself, "this isn't any of your business"

"It became my business when I saved your life, I'd say"

She looked at him again, searching his eyes. "Oh," she mumbled. "Thank you."

They sat in silence, each not looking at the other. Spike looked in the direction of the front door and wondered why he was still here, he was thinking about getting up and leaving when she spoke.

"I am Denali, that is the name of our people," she began drawing Spike's attention. "We are many, but we are separate."

"How so?"

"We have different Orenda, different power as you would call it. I'm sorry, our words don't have good translations" she paused looking at him. He remained silent, waiting for her to continue. She sighed. "We all have different Orenda elements. There is the Tadewi, the Wind People, the Talise, Water People, the Mahkah which is the Earth People and then there are what you saw, the Nachik People, the People of Fire. We all live separately, it is impossible for us to live together, it would mean chaos. Our elements clash, Fire burning Earth, Water drowning Fire and Earth, Wind is the only element that can live amongst them all, though they flame the Nachik... " She paused. "It's complicating."

She shifted in her chair, trying to get comfortable.

"And the armored people?" Spike asked, noticing that Buffy was standing in the hallway and listening, out of Malvina's eyesight.

"Those are the Oneida, the people made from Stone, though that is not their element, because they do not have elements. They work as warriors for each of the Orenda's rulers. Those you saw were the Mahkah Oneida, the warriors for the Earth People."

"How can you tell?" Spike asked.

"Their colours, they wear the colours of the people they serve. Green and Silver, the Earth People."

"Wow that is complicating." Buffy said entering the room, "now tell us why there Oneida are after you."

Malvina looked at the blonde woman standing before her, then shifted her eyes to the blonde man and glared.

"Do you have something they want? Did you steal something?" Buffy accused.

"No," Malvina cried, "I have done nothing wrong!" She began to sob quietly, not wanting her captors to hear.

Spike looked up at Buffy. "Can't we let her out of those chains at least? She isn't going anywhere."

"No, I don't trust her, Spike. Something about her seems..." she looked down at the girl in front of her "wrong."

Buffy walked to the couch and sat next to Spike. "Alright Melvine, I'll make you a deal."

"Malvina." Spike corrected.

She rolled her eyes, "Sorry, _Malvina_. If you tell us why they're after you, we'll let you go. Sound good?"

Malvina lifted her head, looked into the eyes of the woman in front of her and shook her head.

"Well then you're staying. Spike watch her." She said, stomping out of the room.

"What!" Spike exclaimed. "Oh bugger." He looked at the girl in front of him.

"I'm sorry you're stuck here with me," she said.

"It's okay," he said, turning on the television in the corner. "You like Passions?"

She looked at him with confusion and he laughed. He got up and moved her chair so she could see the TV too.

"You're in for a treat love."

* * *

**Woot! Thanks for the review marty powell! Second chapter up! I'm actually really proud of this lol I've literally (haha) been writing all day.**

**ENJOY! Review if you want the next chapter! ;)**


	3. Under the Pale Moonlight

**Thank you to everyone who has been reading my story, I know it's starting out a little slow, but it's going to pick up now, trust me on that one. There is so much going on in my head with this one. **

**I don't have a beta reader, and I'm the first to admit that my spelling and grammar skills are that of a gifted 5 year old. **

**I don't write to be good, I honestly don't think I'm that great of a writer, but like many on FF I just like writing, it's a pass time that I wanted to share with others. **

**Reviews help a lot, thank you to marty powell and ginar369 for your reviews. They are the reason why this story is still going. As much as I like writing, there isn't much of a point of posting it public if no one is enjoying the story. **

**Input is welcome! Tell me what you think, what you predict, what you like/don't like. **

**Enjoy the ride - Red.**

* * *

A tall, thin woman stood in front of three men sitting on their thrones. Her green tinted skin shone in the sunlight that came into the glass room, its rounded ceiling and glass walls so clear that it almost looked like they were all outside, in the forest they called home. The woman ran her brown stained fingertips through her light green hair, letting it fall onto her naked shoulders. As was the norm for her people, the woman's green eyes were greying with age, streaks of the colour tainting the emerald. Her chest was covered by rose petals, ten times their normal size, her lower body covered in shimmering leaves of every colour, that seemed to move and sway. She looked up at her Kings and dropped to her knees.

"I bring sad news, my Lords." She chirped, lowering her eyes.

"The Cocheta escapes?" asked the King in the middle. They all wore identical silver robes with elaborate green trimming, which blended in with their pale brown skin. They looked down at her, their eyes a chilling silver.

"Yes." The woman replied, looking at the ground before her unwilling to look upon her Kings, "She had help, beings from the other dimension, they took her with them."

The King on the right spoke, his voice course and rough. "Did you See where they went?"

"No, my Lordship, they carried her off and away from the Oneida warriors, I could no longer See." Pale yellow sweat began to bead at the girl's forehead, the sweet taste of it reaching her mouth as the golden sweat ran down her cheek and onto her lips.

"Find them," replied the middle King. "Have the Oneida warriors bring the Cocheta to us."

"Kill the beings," added the King on the left, his voice barely over a whisper yet it spoke the loudest to the woman, who shivered at the sound of it.

"Yes your Majesty's, of course." She jumped up and hurriedly fled the room, wanting to escape the glare of their eerie eyes.

Spike woke up with a start, his eyes flung open and his breath coming in gasps. He was lying down on the yellow couch in Buffy's living room, the room pitch black. He had been dreaming, of what he wasn't sure, all he knew was it had terrified him to the bone.

He shook his head, "Well it couldn't have been that scary if I can't even remember."

"Are you awake now, or are you still sleep talking?" a quiet voice asked.

Spike sat up and stretched out his muscles. "I'm up," he replied looking at her silhouette in the dark room. "What do you mean 'sleep talking'?"

"You talk while you sleep, and move around a lot. You looked restless."

"Is that right? What was I saying?"

Malvina laughed bitterly, "No, Buffy! Oh no don't leave me! Buuuufffff-"

"Alright, that's enough." Spike said angrily, walking over to the light switch and turning it on. He turned to look at her, ready to tell her off, when he saw the state of her. Her face was paler than normal; her eyes had red bags underneath. Her upper body was hunched over as if she couldn't hold it in a sitting position any longer, simply said, she looked terrible.

"Are you alright?" Spike asked her, walking up to her.

"I'm fine," she said looking at him, a fake smile on her face, when her stomach growled. _Traitor, _she thought to herself.

"You're hungry, then?" Spike asked, amused.

She smiled sheepishly. "I doubt you have anything I eat, though..." She trailed off, looking at the window.

Spike rolled his eyes impatiently. "Though what?" He finally asked after she didn't continue.

"The Moon might help nourish me." She said, looking back at him with a glare, "Though I doubt you will let me out of this chair." Gazing back at the window, she looked up at the night sky peaking through the curtains. She was surprised at how alike this sky was to her own, in her world. She wondered if her people saw the same moon as this one.

Spike watched her face as she gazed out the window and made a decision. "Listen, pet, I'll make you a deal." He said, blocking her view of the sky, "But this is important, so listen up. Goldylocks is sleeping upstairs; she'll be none the wiser. I need you to not run away, got it? No funny business, I'll let you out of the chair, we'll go outside, look at the stars or whatever. Then we come back in." He folded his arms and looked at her sternly; trying to show her he was serious.

"And then you tie me back up, right?" Malvina asked with a dark smirk. She knew how this was going to turn out, and she didn't want to be a prisoner.

"I don't know. That depends on how you behave, luv." He leaned in front of her and winked, his hands on the lock to her chains, "So what's it going to be?"

Malvina looked over his head at the night's sky, the stars twinkling, almost teasing her. She could hear the Moon calling to her, a soft whisper, like the sound of wind in the trees. She worried about what might happen if she stayed inside much longer.

"Deal." She agreed, locking eyes with the pale, blonde man before her as he began to undo her bindings. Pausing for a minute, he looked at her once more.

"I'm trusting you right now, Malvina. I'm serious, you can't run off. It's too dangerous, first off, and I don't want to get in trouble with the Slayer upstairs." At the word 'Slayer', Malvina gave him a strange look.

"Never mind." He responded to her unanswered question, "Just understand that I'm doing you a _huge_ favour, you owe me." He added with a grin. Responding with a nod, she waited for him to continue with her chains.

Once she was freed, she found that she couldn't stand on her own, and needed to be helped to her feet. Spike took one arm and wrapped it around the back of his neck, lifting her and helping her walk out the door he opened for her. Once outside, she asked him to let her sit in the front lawn, her thin body lightly pressing against the dirt. She took in a breath, and held it in, closing her eyes. She could feel the Moon rejuvenating her, feeling its rays like the sun, penetrating her pores and seeping into her bloodstream. She could hear the faint echo of the Moon and knew instantly that it was in fact the same Moon from home. As she became stronger in body, her spirit began to ache with sadness for the home she might never see again.

Spike had settled down next to her, lighting a cigarette, and noticed the changes happening in her right away. Her skin returned to its original porcelain colour, her hair seemed to turn a brighter red, like freshly spilled blood. Her posture improved as he watched her hold her head high, looking up at the sky. After what seemed like forever, she finally exhaled and opened her eyes, looking at him.

"Thank you." She said, with a little sadness in her voice, "And I'm sorry."

"For what?" He said, taking a puff and blowing it out away from her.

"This." She said, as she locked eyes with him, hers began to turn from the pale red to a bright, emerald green. Hair blowing into her face, changing to into a bright shimmering green, swirling around her head from a wind Spike could not feel. When her hair went back to her shoulders, he saw her skin had changed too, a pale golden colour taking the place of the white, brown freckles doting her skin and her lips a pale sickly green. The transformation of the girl happened within a matter of seconds, and before Spike could react, he felt the squeeze of thick bindings around his upper arms. Giant roots had unearthed themselves, holding him down where he sat unable to move as he stared at the girl, who was running down the street barefooted.

"Malvina!" Spike yelled with fury clear in his voice. He struggled with the binds, pulling his arms up and yanking on them in frustration.

_Oh, bugger this._ He thought, as his face morphed, _she asked for it, time for some fun_.

* * *

**Alright, so with this new Image Manager, I posted a "decent" picture of what Malvina would look like, it's not precise though. If anyone likes drawing and thinks they're up for it, give me a PM.**

**Thanks for reading, it's as much for my entertainment as it is yours :)**


	4. Under the Bright Sunlight

**I want to say a big thank you to marty powell, ginar369, niki jinx, and byakugansharinganweaponhotti e for the reviews! You guys are the reason this chapter is here, your motivation was what I needed!**

**Flashbacks, dreams, memories, etc will be in italics **

**Again, I don't have a beta and my spelling and grammar = gifted 5 year old.**

**More to come soon.**

**Enjoy - Red**

* * *

"Malvina!"

The shout drifted through the opened window into the room, wakening Buffy with a start. She jumped out of bed and ran towards the window, throwing it open. Leaning forward she saw a lone green figure running down the street wearing an awfully familiar dress and a distressed Spike struggling to get off the ground below her, giant snake like things wrapped around this limbs. Shutting the window with a slam, she rushed to get dress and grabbed some supplies. It was time to take things into her own hands.

* * *

Malvinas feet slapped against the hard, flat, rock-like surface as she sped past the giant pieces of oddly shaped metal, her pursuer close behind. She knew it was wrong of her to betray the trust of the odd pale man, but she also knew that she had no choice. She could not let them capture her, for it would mean her death.

Grateful for the cloak of the night, she ducked and weaved, making her way towards the strange houses that were all lined up like soldiers. She ran into the back of a house and quickly ducked into the thick bushes along the side, quieting her breathing and becoming as silent and as still as the greenery around her. Sitting in a ball, she closed her eyes and focused on the bush, willing it to hide her and not let the man see or sense her. Dawn was fast approaching, she could feel it in her leaves, and hoped she could hide until then. She ran her fingers through the soft soil under her and breathed in, feeling the energy flow through her body. She would fight if she must, though she didn't want to. The kindness that the man named Spike showed her was like none she had ever experienced before, or at least not for a very long time. His genuine concern for her, added to the fact that he saved her life was hard for her to understand. He was a stranger to her as she was to him, and one thing she knew for certain was that no one liked strangers. She rested her head on her knees and closed her eyes, trying to push her memories away that tried to bubble forward. However, when exhaustion took over, and she drifted off, her memories popped open with a vengeance.

_ Sitting in a small, dark space, Malvina listened to the angry voices outside of the storage space she slept in, her makeshift bed under her and her singed blanket wrapped around her. _

_ "I swear to you Itzel, I saw it with my own eyes! I wouldn't lie to you!"_

_ "So what are you suggesting, neighbour? That my daughter is secretly Mahkah? That she can control the earth now? You must be insane! She is true Nachik, fire people! We raised her, and we know this. Why must you say such things?"_

_ Malvina could see the three shadows of the people arguing from under the door where she sat quietly, two belonging to her parents, the other of a tall man who lived in their village. _

_ "Amaro," the man said, his shadow approaching her father. "You of all must believe me! I saw your daughter nurturing the plants, I swear it!"_

_ The deep laugh of Amaro floated through the room. "Yes, friend. My daughter has a strange love of plants for a Nachik, this is not so unusual. She will learn, when she goes to care for them and they burn, trust us. Now leave, you have upset my wife and family."_

_ With a grunt the man's shadow left out the door, which shut behind him with a thud. A loud sigh traveled through the room, the heat of the argument dissipated, cooling the room down once more. _

_ "I can't believe that man, Amaro, saying our daughter could be one of them!"_

_ "Itzel," her father spoke softly to her mother. "He speaks the truth. I saw her, I saw Malvina blossom the trees of the forest and speak to them, ushering words of growth and fullness that made them stand taller and become greener. It was…"_

_ "Impossible," replied Itzel, with anger in her voice._

_ "No, my love. It was beautiful." _

_ "If what you speak of is true, we cannot keep her here any longer. If you have witnessed it, and our friends, then others might have as well. And if the Nachik Kings find out…" _

_ "They won't Itzel, we shall keep her secret. We will protect her."_

Malvina woke up suddenly, pulled from her dreams by someone who grabbing her arm. Pulling back she fought with the person until she was ripped from her cocoon in the bushes and brought out into the daylight. Temporarily blinded, she struggled with her captor until she felt something hard and pointed pressed against her back.

"I don't know what you are, but I'm sure a stake through the heart will kill just about anything."

As her eyes adjusted, she turned her head to the side to look into the eyes of the unfriendly blonde who had captured her once more.

"What do you want with me? Let me go!"

The blonde pushed the stake harder against her back, making Malvina cry out in panic. "I told you, I've done nothing wrong!"

Buffy laughed bitterly, "I'll decide that."

* * *

**If you haven't noticed, when it switches to Malvina's pov she talks differently, a little bit more olden age I suppose. It happened by accident to be honest and I just sort of went with it. **


	5. No Place

**What's this? A chapter the day after the last one? I had the urge to write, and this came out so easily that I had to just keep going with it. Plus, I have 5 reviews so I figured why not make it 5 chapters. 5 for 5. Want to make it 6 for 6? :D**

** I hope you enjoy, let me know!**

**-Red**

* * *

Spike ran through the streets, trying to keep up with the now green haired girl, cursing himself for trusting her. _That's what you get though Spike, _he thought bitterly to himself. _Trust a girl, and she'll rip you to shreds._ Jumping onto a car to get a better view, he noticed in the distance the sun coming up.

_Oh, bugger._

Malvina was nowhere in sight and he couldn't even track her anymore. Jumping off the car, he made his way to his temporary home, muttering all the way. "Stupid girl, all I'm trying to do is protect her. Why she got to run off anyway? Stupid, stupid, girl. Speaking of stupid girls…" Spike trailed off as a young woman approached him on the still dark street. Wearing clothes that left little to the imagination and a smile that was so inviting, Spike wanted to sink his fangs into her pretty little neck. Which he would if it weren't for the damn chip. And Buffy. Thoughts of Buffy made him turn from the girl, a bitter and familiar feeling creeping into his silent chest. She wouldn't be very happy with him when she finds out the girl got away. _Oh well, _he thought. _She's never happy with him anyway._

* * *

Buffy cracked her knuckles, looking down at the demon in front of her who she had chained to a poll in her basement. It had gotten away once and Buffy wasn't going to let that happen again. Pacing around it, she listened to make sure no one was home before swinging her fist to collide with the demons cheek. With an inhuman shriek, the demon spat golden blood, before looking up at her.

"Please," it pleaded with her. "Let me go."

Buffy scoffed at it. "I'm not going to do that until you tell me what you are and where you're from. Oh, and what those bigger looking demons wanted with you."

"I cannot say," was all the answer she got in return. The same answer she had been getting for the past hour. It was getting tiring, and Dawn was going to be home soon. She had other things to do. Besides, something about this demon made her uneasy. It just wasn't right, Buffy didn't know how she knew, but there was no denying that this thing dressed like a girl didn't belong.

"Then you'll stay here until you change your mind," Buffy replied, turning from the demon. "And you will change your mind." And with that, she shrugged and walked up the stairs, leaving that thing in the darkness.

* * *

Malvina sat on the rough ground, her head lolling to the side, unable to lift it out of exhaustion. She tried to focus, her head blurry and confused from the pounding it took. Why that girl was so concerned with her and her business she had no idea. She acted like it was her mission to cause Malvina as much pain as she could. Like the blonde girl was above her, and Malvina just dirt under her shoes. What use was she to her people if she couldn't even escape from one girl? How was she supposed to free the Denali, the people of her world, if she couldn't even free herself? With a sob she slowly lifted her head to rest on the poll and closed her eyes. She would rest and maybe when she woke, she would be strong enough to escape.

* * *

Spike paced back and forth in his home at the cemetery, anxious to get out there and start looking for Malvina again. He didn't know what it was, but something about the girl intrigued him. He wanted to learn more about her, who she was and what she was doing. He told himself that it was just plain curiosity, nothing more nothing less. He just wanted to get to know the pet a little better, that's all. But still, it bothered him that he had been so willing to trust someone. Especially someone he had just met. There was something about her though, something that made Spike feel as if he knew her for a very long time.

Outside the sun dipped below the trees as Spike reached for his trench coat, walking toward the giant stone doors and wrenching them open, smelling the cool breeze of the night.

_Smells like the dead, _he thought with a grin.

He walked a couple feet until the sound of heavy feet in the distance made him stop short. Ducking behind a tombstone, he listened as the person got closer. No, not person. People. There were many, maybe two or three from the sound of it. He peeked over the top of the grave and saw three giant demons, all glowing red and yellow.

_Those look just like those green demons that nearly got Malvina! _he realized, creeping from his hiding spot to another one closer to the beings.

Watching them march in a line, he understood what they must be doing. They were tracking her, same as him. They must know where they were going, making a beeline straight to the pet.

_Well, _Spike thought with a laugh, _they can track her for me._

* * *

**Leave a review if you liked it! Thanks!**


End file.
